My wife and I retired recently and moved to the Charleston, South Carolina region where we bought a home on the Wando River built by John Weiland Homes. The developmen is charming with pastel-colored homes that line the streets. Those on the river have private docks on the Wando. They are also built on piers that protect the houses against potential flooding. About half the homes are not elevated and generally have 3-4 bedrooms over two floors.
As much as we love the home and it's location John Weiland Homes has been very difficult to work with. I appreciate that new builds settle over the course of the first year and require builders to tweak things here and there. We were instructed by Weiland to develop a "punch list" with repairs required that were caused by normal settling of the house.
We have developed such a list including doors that will not close or lock correctly, Portions of the living room ceiling that the painter simply missed altogether, gaps between the door and door frame wide enough to see the person in the room from outside, and, so called, nail-pops where nails used to hold sheetrock in place have burst through the spackle and are on display throughout the entire house.
Most recently, we have requested assistance with the big beautiful shower in the Master bath because the grout has been turning orange/brown. Clean it and move on, we thought. The problem is it remains discolored and sections that seem to clean up are brown again in two days. After multiple requests for assistance, an installer came to look at it. He took many photos of the discolored area. Said it could probably be remedied by washing it all in Muriatic Acid and applying a sealer. The next day I received a text from Weiland. They said the tile was all installed correctly and I would need to attend to it since they would not. We are surrounded by contractors who are building more houses for this Weiland development. They block our driveways so we cannot leave , they work from early morning until after dark. Music blares, trucks roar, nail guns pop all day. Not once has Weiland extended a word of encouragement to get through the ongoing construction. Something as simple as fixing faulty grout would have gone a long way for me. Instead, they refused to "make it right", told me the grout does not need to be sealed as the contractor instructed. I suggested they review internet sights that said the problem may have been the mix ,but after 5 months in a newly constructed home this should not be happening. Yes we tried vinegar, tried baking soda and vinegar, tried a whole collection of cleaning products that promised to return it all to shiny white. Nothing has worked. "Surely other neighbors must be having similar problems. Was the grout prepared the same way as ours?"
"It is a maintenance issue."
"But the builders don't seal the grout, you said."
We will not repair it.
We won't move. We have retired. But I have plenty of time to write reviews.
